Become a live organ donor and save a life on World Kidney Day

More than 200 Salford Royal patients are on the waiting list for a kidney transplant that could put an end to gruelling dialysis treatment and ultimately save their life.

To mark World Kidney Day on Thursday 14 March, Salford Royal is raising awareness of the need for living organ donation.

There are currently around 400 patients who are receiving dialysis treatment at the hospital’s renal unit or at one of the Trust’s satellite units in Wigan, Bolton, Rochdale and Oldham. Approximately 160 patients have the life-saving machines set up in their own home so they can dialyse without having to go into hospital for their treatment.

Dialysis is a procedure to remove waste products and excess fluid from the body when the kidneys stop working properly. There are different types of dialysis, which may be carried out overnight at home or several times a week during the day at home or in hospital.

Last year, 68 patients at Salford Royal received a kidney transplant, with about 25% of kidneys donated by a living donor. Some patients were able to have a transplant before they ever needed dialysis.

In 2018, approximately 197 potential donors contacted the Trust’s Live Donor Team with 59 of these either donating a kidney, going through investigations or awaiting appointments.

Nicola Budzik, Live Donor Specialist Nurse at Salford Royal, said: “A live donor transplant is the gold standard treatment for patients in renal failure, providing a better quality of life for them.

“Living kidney donation is carried out via keyhole surgery and the donor will be in hospital for around three to five days and back to normal activities after 12 weeks.

“Donors require lifelong follow up with a live donor nurse so that we can monitor their kidney function, blood pressure, weight and any other issues that they may have.”

A living kidney donor could be a family member or a friend; it doesn’t need to be a perfect match.

If there is no living donor available, patients go on the kidney transplant waiting list where on average they will wait for about three years for a suitable match to become available. Patients from black and Asian ethnic groups tend to wait longer for a transplant as there is a shortage of kidney donors from these groups.

At least one in 10 people have chronic kidney disease (CKD) with the most common causes being diabetes, blood pressure and being overweight.

Most kidney diseases are not curable and kidney function tends to get worse over time. To offer the best quality and length of life, the best treatment is to have a kidney transplant from a living donor once the kidney function is at about 15% of normal.

Dr Rosie Donne, Consultant Nephrologist at Salford Royal, said: “While patients are on the waiting list many will have to undergo regular dialysis treatment to keep them alive. Being on dialysis is a difficult life and, in some cases, can lead to financial hardship and even loss of employment. Sadly, some of our patients die while waiting for a kidney transplant.

“Our team at Salford Royal hopes to increase the number of living donors so more people can avoid dialysis completely or shorten their wait for a life-saving transplant.

“We can all help by talking to our loved ones about donation and joining the organ donor register to allow our organs to be donated if we die suddenly.”

Dialysis patient and father-of-three Khalid Bashir is on a one-man mission to break down the barriers surrounding live kidney donation because he knows it could save someone’s life. Khalid, who lives in Rochdale, said he is determined to not let his condition stop him from leading a normal life and has dedicated his spare time to breaking down barriers in the South Asian community, to raise awareness and educate his peers about live organ donation.